Nigeria Secures $13 Billion In Investment Pledges From Oil Firms
By Ndubuisi Micheal Obineme
Nigeria has secured a total of $13 billion in investment commitments in its oil and gas sector from 15 leading international and independent energy, oil, and gas companies, according to Olu Verheijen, the Special Adviser on Energy to Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu.
As part of the Federal Government’s efforts to strengthen the Nigerian energy sector, Verheijen and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) have recently met with representatives of 15 oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria where they discussed a strategic approach to advance a Presidential Initiative aimed at addressing the nation’s revenue emergency whilst contributing to stabilizing Nigeria’s economy.
These sessions, held in Lagos and Abuja, were carefully chosen after a detailed review process by NUPRC and the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Energy. The oil companies in the deal include Chevron, TotalEnergies, Shell, NAOC, Exxon Mobil, Seplat, Heirs Holdings, Waltersmith, First E&P, among others.
According to Verheijen, “The results of these talks disclosed significant investment opportunities with an estimated $55.2 billion in investments projected by 2030, of which $13.5 billion is expected to be invested by these companies within 12 months from now.
“We are faced with a revenue crisis which is impacting all Nigerians. To urgently address this, President Bola Tinubu is actively seeking ways to grow revenue and forex to stabilize our economy and currency, and the oil and gas sector remains critical to our ability to do so despite current production levels falling significantly short of our potential,” Verheijen said.
During these consultations, participating Operators also shared insights into the challenges and barriers affecting their investment strategies and the swift rollout of planned projects.
Collectively, they also pinpointed key strategies that will ensure the delivery of 2.1 million barrels by December 2024, positioning Nigeria well ahead of President Tinubu’s campaign promise of 2.6 million barrels by 2027. The proposed measures are also expected to cause a 100% increase in gas production by 2027, exceeding President Bola Tinubu’s campaign pledge of 20% growth in that sector.
